About

The Appalachian Node of the National Institute on Drug Abuse Clinical Trials Network (NIDA-CTN) is a collaboration between University of Pittsburgh, West Virginia University, and Pennsylvania State University. 

This node is situated in central Appalachia—a geographic and cultural region along the Appalachian mountain range, historically characterized by a rural population and reliance on mining, forestry, agriculture, and industry. Distressingly, Appalachia is now also defined by disproportionately severe health impacts from the opioid epidemic. It is within our own community that the Appalachian Node aims to improve outcomes and reduce disparities.

In keeping with the NIDA-CTN mission, the Appalachian Node enables medical and specialty treatment providers, treatment researchers, participating patients, and the National Institute on Drug Abuse to “cooperatively develop, validate, refine, and deliver new treatment options to patients.”  We organize and participate in national, community-based multi-site trials and subsequently disseminate research findings to physicians, clinicians, providers, and patients. 

The Appalachian Node is co-directed by Drs. Jane Liebschutz (University of Pittsburgh) and Erin Winstanley (University of Pittsburgh), with a team of accomplished clinical and research collaborators.

NIDA-CTN

Provides an enterprise in which NIDA, treatment researchers, and community-based service providers work toward new treatment options in community-level clinical practice.

CTN Nodes

The Clinical Trials Network (CTN) framework consists of sixteen nodes, a Clinical Coordinating Center, and a Data and Statistics Center.